Beautiful Minds: Finding Your Lifelong Potential

The human brain plays a critical role in every area of your life, from learning, working and playing, to personality, aptitude and memory. While the brain is one of the body’s most important organs, it is often forgotten when thinking about physical fitness and overall wellness. Get your mental muscle in shape through four easy…

by Mia Syn, MS, RD November is Sweet Potato Awareness Month. Besides enjoying them in pie and casseroles this Thanksgiving, toss them into your vegetable-packed salads for some seasonal flair. Beta-carotene is a standout in this root vegetable, a plant pigment that our body converts to vitamin A. Vitamin A is important for supporting our…

by Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D. The belief that aging is inevitable is in many cases a myth. It is not age per se, but years of abuse that wear down our bodies. (1) Many aspects of aging can be slowed or avoided – from wrinkles and age-related health conditions to middle-age spread and even to…

by Mia Syn, M.S., R.D. Many of us know that adding carrots into the diet, is good for our eyes. What we may not realize is that there is a plethora of food and nutrients that can help keep vision sharp and slow the natural decline that occurs with age. Some of these nutrients include antioxidants…

by Mia Syn, M.S., R.D. Vitamin D has long been referred to as the ‘sunshine vitamin.’ Vitamin D researchers suggest that 5-30 minutes of sun exposure at least twice a week between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to exposed skin without sunscreen will result in sufficient vitamin D synthesis. (1) However, research suggests that almost 50…

by Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D. “The heart is the chief feature of a functioning mind.” – Frank Lloyd Wright The heart and the head are not always on the same page. But one thing is certain, when it comes to nourishing these two essential parts of you, what’s good for one is also good for…

by Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD Your brain: it helps command everything you do. It powers digestion, circulation, breathing and thinking. It controls your body movements and emotions. Parts of your brain and nervous system help release chemical messengers that give you signals that it is time to eat, that you are thirsty, that you are…

The brain is much like a newborn baby. It is fragile and needs all of the proper care and nutrition to help it grow into a strong organ to carry us throughout our lifespan. We are sharing four important steps to better brain health that you can start today. No. 1: Volunteer with today’s youth…

By: Elizabeth Somer, M.A.,R.D. Diet dogma has a life of its own. Even when science reveals the truth behind a diet fad or web rumor, the myth lingers on. Here are a few mistaken identities in the nutrition arena. Myth No. 1: Vitamin supplements are a waste of time. Fact: Every so often the news reports…

By: Elizabeth Somer, M.A.,R.D. Nutrition science has finally caught up with common sense. In a landmark study from Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, the researchers conclude that men who supplement with a multivitamin have a significantly lower risk for serious heart disease issues. What makes this study different from others? In contrast to previous…

By: Elizabeth Somer, M.A.,R.D. Unless you’re supplementing daily with vitamin D, it’s likely you are deficient and don’t even know it. Up to three in every four people tested are low in this vitamin. What’s the risk? Until recently, vitamin D’s sole job was to support calcium absorption and deposition into bone, thus lowering osteoporosis…

About Health Update

The Health Update is written in part by a panel of health experts to provide tips to help support a healthy body. It focuses on the four dimensions of brain health – nutrition, physical health, mental health, social well-being.